How much will tire rubbing affect off road ability?

Hey everyone, just recently bought an 01 4x4 Xtracab SR5 so I'm new to the forum and had a quick question. So I just installed BFG A/T's size 265/75/16 and like many others, I have minor rubbing on the front fenders due to the aggressive tread of these tires. I removed the front mud flaps and trimmed away most of the plastic, which helped greatly, but I still get a small amount of rub on the fender well at full turn. My question is will this have any significant detriment to off road performance (i.e. could it get to the point where it is damaging to the tires?) Also I was wondering if wheel spacers would help solve this problem, a local off road shop told me that it would probably just make it worse because it extends the pivot point of the wheel, but I have heard other people say they've used spacers to solve similar issues. Thanks for the help guys!

 

wheel spacers will make it worse.

and it could tear into the tires. like you have a first gen so you should have a pinch weld on the cab where the tire can rub, on my tires theres pretty much a 1/8in wide chunk taken out all the way around my tires, its like a line, almost like its supposed to be there. hah. but yes it could be damaging

 

Thanks for the reply. I guess I'll just be careful until I eventually get it lifted. But like I said, it's really nothing serious now, only a slight rub at full wheel turn. I was just concerned if I take it on trails where the wheels will articulate more.